a series of thoughts on the path

Everything is philosophy (‘ilm) and politics (‘amal). Sincerity (ikhlas) in both is the basis of salvation and connected to the depths of one’s realizations of Allah’s Oneness (tawhid).

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The most valuable thing in the whole world is free: “I believe in what has come from Allah as it was intended by Allah, and I believe in what has come from the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) as it was intended by the Messenger of Allah.” (al-Shafi’i)

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The Qur’an implies that those in history most likely to reject Allah’s rights over them are propertied men with male offspring.

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There are those that are trying to get to Paradise, those who do not know there is a Paradise, and those who obtain a lot of this world by oppressing those trying to get to Paradise. Seek the first with sincerity, teach the second with mercy, and oppose the third with courage.

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Every valid criticism you have ever made of another person, and every valid criticism you have ever heard another say or seen in print – look inside yourself and apply it to your own self.

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Every moment is Divine Intervention.

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If we were to give every breath from now until the moment we die for the sake of Allah, it would not be equal to the blessings we have already been given prior to this breath.

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Whatever we do, we should try to obey Allah, and however we choose to do it, we should try to not become an excuse for others to hate Islam.

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Islam is about opportunity cost: there will never be anything more valuable than choosing what Allah wants from me at any given moment.

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I don’t know my own state with Allah, and you don’t know your own state with Allah, so let’s not pretend anymore that I know your state and you know my state.

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We can’t speak of desiring only Allah unless we actually desire nothing except Allah: not food, sleep, sex, companionship, housing, clothes, job, social life, family, study opportunities, respect, honor, dignity, and so on. Allah has described Jannah in deeply physical and social ways. So if we are not willing to give up something in this life for its superior mirror image in the hereafter, then we are definitely not truthful about giving up the rewards of the hereafter for the Creator of the hereafter alone.